12 New No-Cut Hairstyles

Ryan Pfluger

By
Didi Gluck

Are you in a hairstyle rut? Six readers learn how to overcome theirs—all without a single snip of the scissors.

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Emma Langridge, 35

Her default hairdo: Most days, Emma—the mother of a 10-month-old and an accounts clerk for the clothing company Calypso—washes her hair and throws it into a chignon, which stays put until bedtime. “I never wear it down,” she says, “because out of sight means out of mind to me.” It also means squandering her hair’s natural body.

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Look 1: Loose Waves

To play up Emma’s volume, celebrity stylist Kristan Serafino gave her an easy “dry set,” placing about 10 hot rollers in her roughly blown-dry hair. Serafino curled Emma’s hair under with the rollers, from ends to roots. And to prevent a line of demarcation, Serafino staggered the tops of the rollers, as if she were laying bricks, instead of placing them in a straight line. After 10 minutes—just the right amount of time to, say, dress a baby—Serafino removed the rollers and gently tousled Emma’s hair.

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Look 2: Flower Power

Next, Serafino went for something a little more styled that takes even less time to pull off. She made a deep side part, then she slicked back the front portion of Emma’s hair using a fine-tooth comb dredged in mousse (for a tightly packed effect) and slipped in a floral barrette right behind Emma’s ear. (Shown: Ban.do Metallic Mini Pom Pom Flower, $12, shopbando.com.)

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Helen Elliott, 46

Her default hairdo: Helen is a painter and an art teacher, so it’s no surprise that her hair often ends up in a messy knot, out of her eyes. Other times she wears it down and, she says, “unkempt.”

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Look 1: Modern Braids

These are no Pippi Longstocking plaits. For a playful yet polished feel, Serafino braided both sides of the head, starting behind the ears. She secured each braid with an elastic band about an inch from the end. Then, to give each braid a ruched effect, Serafino pulled the tip taut with one hand and used the other to slide the hair right below the band upward, until it bunched up slightly.

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Look 2: Side Chignon

Helen’s hair has a naturally wavy texture, which Serafino enhanced by spraying the roots with dry shampoo. (Try Tresemmé Fresh Start Color Care Dry Shampoo; $5, target.com for info.) To suit Helen’s easygoing personality, Serafino pulled her hair casually to one side before securing it with an elastic. Then Serafino teased the tail with a brush so that when she wrapped it around the elastic into a chignon, it looked wild and full rather than wound tight. She held the chignon in place with bobby pins and finished with a spritz of hair spray all over.

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Shanette Vega, 35

Her default hairdo: Usually you’ll find Shanette, a marketing manager, with her hair down and wavy. “I’m not one of those girls who fight their curls,” she says. And while she loves her curls, what she said she would love even more is new ways to wear them.

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Look 1: Offset Pony

To prevent Shanette’s gorgeous hair from overwhelming her equally gorgeous face, Serafino gathered all her hair loosely behind her right ear with an elastic band. Next, Serafino wrapped a strand around the elastic, securing the end with a bobby pin. She ran a dime-size amount of Moroccanoil Treatment ($43, moroccanoil.com), made from hydrating argan oil, from midshaft through the ends to define the ringlets and reduce frizz.

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Look 2: Messy Topknot

To further flaunt Shanette’s great bone structure, and to give her a quick, easy evening option, Serafino created a loose topknot. She wound the tail once around the elastic, secured the base with bobby pins, and let the ends tumble elegantly forward.

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Linda Gnat-Mullin, 62

Her default hairdo: For nearly 48 years, Linda, a Reiki master, has worn her hair in a classic bob with bangs, which, she says, “I don’t do much with but like there anyway.” The hairstyle takes the guesswork out of her morning routine—but it also hides her radiant skin and eyes.

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Look 1: Classic Headband

To show off more of Linda’s profile, Serafino pulled the sides of her hair back with a skinny metallic headband. (Try Sweatybands in Viva Diva; $15, sweatybands.com.) The youthful style helps to camouflage some thinning hair around Linda’s temples. And it leaves her safely in her well-fringed comfort zone.

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Look 2: Modern Bouffant

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Angela Naima, 44

Her default hairdo: Who has time for hair when juggling three kids and a job as a technical-product engineer for a health-care company? Not Angela—hence her signature look: “I usually pull all my hair to the back of my head, give it a couple of twists, and secure it with a clip.” But while convenient, the clip is “a tad outdated,” says Serafino. “More important, it exposes some breakage along the hairline and doesn’t make the most of her length.”

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Look 1: Faux Hawk

To add texture, Serafino sprayed dry shampoo at the roots (try Drybar Detox Dry Shampoo; $20, thedrybar.com), then backcombed the hair at the crown. Next, she smoothed the top down gently with a brush. And, finally, she pulled the sides back and gathered them in a tight ponytail (which holds hair more tautly than a barrette), allowing the area to pouf up a bit.

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Look 2: Slicked Back

For a fresher take on the old half-up, half-down hairdo, Serafino pulled back the front section of Angela’s hair and secured it just below the crown with an elastic. Then Serafino used her fingers as a brush, spraying them with hair spray and using them to batten down the baby pieces. Optional: French-braiding the pulled-back portion.

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Elizabeth Lyons, 52

Her default hairdo: “This style just works for me,” says glass sculptor Elizabeth Lyons. “She has worn her curls in some version of a chin-length bob for a long time,” says her daughter Eve, a photo editor at Real Simple. But just because things work doesn’t mean that they can’t be improved.

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Look 1: Defined Curls

Serafino explained that the smallest changes can have the biggest impact. To wit: learning to air-dry curls properly. She instructed Elizabeth to saturate her hair using a spray bottle filled with water. Next, Serafino worked in a quarter-size drop of curl-enhancing styling cream. (Try ColorProof FiberBlast Texture Crème; $22, colorproof.com for salons.) Then she wound small sections of hair around her finger, as if around the barrel of a curling iron. Finally, she kept her hands off Elizabeth’s hair until it had completely air-dried. “The more you touch curly hair—which is delicate to begin with because of its coiled structure—the more you rough up its outer layer and leave it looking fuzzy,” says Serafino.

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Look 2: Wraparound Headband

To enhance the springiness of Elizabeth’s curls, Serafino simply twisted small sections around a small-barreled curling iron, holding the iron vertically. Then she slid in a wraparound headband close to the hairline. (Try the Emi-Jay headband; $5, emi-jay.com.) Last, she gently “fluffed” the hair just behind the band to give the style a flattering, less round shape.